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Monday, March 11, 2013

Long Commutes for Some Workers

Based on a report recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau, approximately 5.5 percent of the workers living in Oregon had commutes of 60 minutes or more in 2011. Also about 38,275 workers, or 2.4 percent, live in Oregon, but work in another state.

Nationwide about 8.1 percent of workers had commutes of at least 60 minutes. New York, Maryland, and New Jersey had the largest percentage of workers with long commutes. The average one-way commute for workers nationwide was 25.5 minutes. However, those working outside their state of residence had longer commutes averaging 44.8 minutes.

Similarly, an article last week in The Oregonianhighlighted commuting in the Portland region based on the Census Bureau's data. In the region 6.4 percent of workers had commutes of 60 minutes or longer and 0.7 percent were "mega-commuters" with commutes of 90 minutes or more and distances of at least 50 miles. Comparing Clackamas, Multnomah,and Washington counties, Clackamas County had the largest percentage of workers commuting to another county for work. In Clackamas County, 49 percent of its workers commute to another county, with most traveling to Multnomah and Washington counties.

For more information, check out the release from the U.S. Census Bureau.

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